Korean BBQ with 9 side dishes in Gangnam, Seoul: Woosang Hwarogui

Had beef with my mom for the first time in a while! Woosang Hwarogui Maebong Station Branch, known as a Yangjaecheon go-to (or should I call it a Maebong Station spot?). Anyway, I had errands near Yangjae, and my mom said she was craving meat, so I did a quick search and we went.

Woosang Hwarogui near Maebong Station: parking and opening hours

Woosang Hwarogui Gangnam Maebong Station Branch gets recommended a lot as a work-dinner spot near Maebong Station, and I get why — the entrance was upscale and pleasant. In the middle of Gangnam where parking is a war zone, having easy parking right out front was such a plus!

Woosang Hwarogui Gangnam Maebong Station Branch hours!

• Monday–Friday 11:00 AM – 10:00 PM
• Saturday 12:00 PM – 10:00 PM
• Closed Sundays

Just so you know!

Private tables for four and group rooms — is a reservation needed?

So many customers as soon as we walked in. We had reserved ahead so we got seated right away, but seeing the hall already packed, we could've easily ended up waiting!

Comedian Lee Eun-ji, whom I love, had apparently been here too. Seeing she'd written 'Love Dive' while holding her breath, I wonder if she came with the Jirak Studio crew? haha

Looking around a bit, they had a big room like this too. Great for group dinners!

The 4-person tables were set up so privately, perfect for a date! We didn't bother closing the curtain, but it's there, and it seems great for serious conversations too!!

On the table were a pretty water bottle and glasses, plus a note on how to eat well. It said to pair everything with Maldon salt and the various side dishes! They even recommended non-alcoholic drinks for people who don't drink — loved that, haha.

What comes with the 'sang' assorted beef platter at Woosang Hwarogui

Woosang Hwarogui Maebong Station Branch's menu~ You can easily order via tablet! We ordered the 'sang' assorted beef platter.

I personally care a lot about side menus at BBQ places, and this had doenjang rice with soup and even naengmyeon (cold noodles)... pass!! There was an 'extra scallion pile' listed and I wondered what that meant — soon found out, haha.

Skipped the alcohol since I was driving! Thinking about it, next time I should try the passionfruit ade.

This whole matte black, sleek table setup comes together. So classy.

The real highlight: all 9 side dishes

Wet towels with 'Woosang' printed on them, neatly set — and not disposable wet wipes either, which felt like getting treated well, like being at a fancy restaurant! Now let me show you the incredible side dish lineup at this Yangjaecheon spot, Woosang Hwarogui Maebong Station Branch... this part is the real kicker...

Garlic scape pickles, white kimchi, seasoned cucumber-pepper

Celery pickles, mustard leaf kimchi, potato salad

Braised shiitake, wasabi, Maldon salt

Notice what all 9 side dishes have in common? If you did, you're a genius among geniuses. But really, I felt the owner must be well-studied — every dish had sour, spicy, or sweet umami flavors that cut through the richness of the beef! Especially the celery pickles and seasoned cucumber-pepper — paired with the soft beef texture, they really brought the texture alive. How did they curate exactly those menu items? So impressive...

I could understand the salt and wasabi, but the braised shiitake really doesn't make sense either — it goes so well with beef. Everyone try it.

This is that mysterious 'scallion pile(?)' from the menu earlier haha, literally a pile of scallions!!! What is this!! I thought, but then you drizzle the tangy scallion sauce underneath onto the meat and put it on top, and oh man...... it's perfect...

Yangjaecheon restaurant specialty: everything's stylish. Even the grill plate is stylish. Just snapped a photo when they set the grill down, but there's something so sleek about it...

Staff grilling the beef, cut by cut

The 'sang' assorted beef platter arrived!!! Wow, I didn't expect it to be this generous — meat stacked layer upon layer...

And the staff explained each cut of meat and kindly guided us on the best order to grill them in, which was so nice.

They said that 'gadak galbi' is the signature, and once I tried it I understood why.

Cherry tomatoes, corn, garlic, pineapple, cheongyang peppers, mushrooms. Loved that they gave us plenty of side vegetables too. Especially the pineapple and peppers!!! The kind of thing you end up eating more of than the meat at a BBQ... love it.

Before grilling, we took a group photo with the scallion pile and the meat. My mom's still into that kind of thing — such a cutie, haha, love her.

The meat started turning golden brown! I personally like medium-rare, but my mom likes it well-done, so I grabbed a few pieces first. Topped with wasabi and a dip in Maldon salt, one bite.

Onto the next cut... keep going. This time we grilled mushrooms and cherry tomatoes too. The heat was strong so everything cooked quickly, which was great.

The complimentary egg-yolk soy sauce rice! I was already craving some carbs. The owner's got perfect, top-tier sense.

A bit more time grilling my favorite vegetables. The corn was really sweet too.

Eating it like this with mustard leaf kimchi is also amazing!

Eating it with the pickles brings a burst of umami!

Eating it with scallion salad cuts all the richness. Taking turns bite by bite was such a small joy.

On to the next cut. We were both starving.

Nicely golden pieces. I'm a huge fan of warm pineapple — even at an expensive meat buffet in Canada, I ate like ten pieces of just grilled pineapple. The corn was sweet and delicious too, wherever it was from.

Mom of a blogger daughter: take a picture like this

haha, my adorable mom

We ate hard, and kept eating. That celery pickle was such a good side dish I wanted to stock up on it at home!

We ate the carbs diligently too...

Signature seasoned gadak galbi, saved for last

The long-awaited signature seasoned gadak galbi! They said it's best eaten last, so we grilled it last.

Unlike typical seasoned galbi, the seasoning wasn't heavy — just lightly seasoned — and that was insane. Beef can taste this good even seasoned this way.

Final push~ Mom and I went, 'Wow I'm so full,' 'But we can't leave any,' 'When will we come back to this Yangjaecheon spot again,' and really diligently finished every single bite!

It was there — now it's gone.

On our way out, I noticed the table that had been used for a group dinner was empty, and the lighting was so softly beautiful I took a photo. This Yangjaecheon restaurant, Woosang Hwarogui Maebong Station Branch, seems like it'd be great for couples on a date too. Seriously highly recommend! I'll come back again with my mom on my own dime!